Title: Off Campus
Series: Bend or Break
Author: Amy Jo Cousins
Genre: New Adult Romance
Length: Novel (317 pages)
Publisher: Samhain Publishing (December 30th, 2014)
Heat Level: Moderate
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥ 5 Hearts
Blurb: Everyone’s got secrets. Some are just harder to hide.
With his father’s Ponzi scheme assets frozen, Tom Worthington believes finishing college is impossible unless he can pay his own way. After months sleeping in his car and gypsy cabbing for cash, he’s ready to do just that.
But his new, older-student housing comes with an unapologetically gay roommate. Tom doesn’t ask why Reese Anders has been separated from the rest of the student population. He’s just happy to be sleeping in a bed.
Reese isn’t about to share his brutal story with his gruff new roommate. You’ve seen one homophobic jock, you’ve seen ’em all. He plans to drag every twink on campus into his bed until Tom moves out. But soon it becomes clear Tom isn’t budging.
Tom isn’t going to let some late-night sex noise scare him off, especially when it’s turning him on. But he doesn’t want any drama either. He’ll keep his hands, if not his eyes, to himself. Boundaries have a way of blurring when you start sharing truths, though. And if Tom and Reese cross too many lines, they may need to find out just how far they can bend…before they break.
Warning: This book contains cranky roommates who vacillate between lashing out and licking, some male/male voyeurism, emotional baggage that neither guy wants to unpack, and the definitive proof that sound carries in college housing.
ISBN: 9781619223936
Product Link: https://www.samhainpublishing.com/book/5287/off-campus
Reviewer: Tina
Review: This is a really complex and, at times, a slow and long book. It is an extremely intelligent book – the writing was just smart. I liked it a lot…it just seemed a little bit too slow and too long at times. There were several issues conquered in this story – the fears of coming out in college, the brutality and effects of the selfishness of a parent, bullying, sexual assault, the normal fears and issues with becoming an adult. Which for these two, meant completely losing and rebuilding themselves.
Both the main characters have major issues to work through. Tom is a mess. He’s really lived both extremes – wealth and poverty – and he’s learned from both of them. With the fallout from his father’s mess, he’s discovered that he really wasn’t a great person and he didn’t have any real friends (he later finds out he did have one. He feels completely isolated and alone and basically shuts himself off from the world.
He basically became agoraphobic trying to stay away from the press of his father. He does what he has to for survival – which means living out of his car at one point. He’s lost all confidence in himself and is a shell of what he used to be. When he finally does what he needs to go back to school, he pretty much wants to stay off the radar and get done.
Then he meets Reese.
Reese has a whole other set of issues he’s dealing with. (Not going include the spoiler) His defense mechanisms make Tom crazy – in a couple of different ways. He is also closed off but hides it better. Tom sees through his charade pretty quickly and the two forge a relationship – albeit not one of total trust and honesty. Reese is really more forgiving and giving in their relationship and really becomes a crutch for Tom.
The story is told from Tom’s POV so his issues seem to overshadow Reese’s.
While I liked both of these characters, Cash was my favorite. He is the honest, somewhat obnoxious, best friend of Tom that you cannot help but LOVE! He absolutely made the book for me and I cannot wait to read his story.
Book 2 is about a character that is hated in this book so I’m anxious to see how that plays out.
* I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review through http://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com *